Fiber optic communication is an emerging method of transmitting information from a source (transmitter) to a destination (receiver) using optical fibers as the communication channel. Optical fibers are flexible, transparent fibers made of thin glass silica or plastic that transmits light throughout the length of the fiber between the source and the destination. Fiber optic communications allows for the transmission of data over longer distances and at higher bandwidth than other known forms of communications. Fiber optics are an improved form of communication over metal wires because the light traveling through the fiber experiences less loss and is immune to electromagnetic interference. Companies use optical fibers to transmit telephone signals, internet communication, and cable television signals. Lasers can be used to generate optical signals for communication over fiber optic networks.
Referring to FIG. 1A, a tunable laser calibration system 100a conventionally includes a wavelength meter 110, an optical spectrum analyzer 120, and an oscilloscope 130, each receiving an output signal Sout from a tunable laser 200. An optical splitter 140 splits the output signal Sout for delivery to the wavelength analyzer 110, the optical spectrum analyzer 120, and the oscilloscope 130. An optical/electrical converter 142 converts the optical signal Sout to an electrical signal for receipt by the oscilloscope 130. The calibration system 100a generally uses the optical spectrum analyzer 120 to measure the shape of the output optical spectrum and the oscilloscope 130 to measure an output modulation amplitude (OMA) and an extinction ratio (ER) of a tunable laser 200. The calibration system 100a generally uses the wavelength meter 110 to calibrate the peak output wavelength from the tunable laser.